MANILA, Philippines — Security Bank Corp., the country’s sixth largest lender based on total assets, reported on Tuesday lower earnings in the first half of the year.
In a regulatory filing, Security Bank said its net income in the first six months of the year reached P4.3 billion, 18 percent lower than a year ago.
The lender said the decline in its net income during the January-June period was due to 59 percent or P655 million decrease in trading gains and 55 percent or P424 million increase in provision for income tax.
Meanwhile, loans grew 12 percent year-on-year while deposits jumped 17 percent.
As of 3:13 p.m. Tuesday, shares in Security Bank were down P4 or 1.95 percent to P201 apiece at the stock exchange. — Ian Nicolas Cigaral